BONNERS FERRY — An active shooter training involving multiple law enforcement and emergency response agencies in Boundary County has been canceled after the federal government entered a partial shutdown Feb. 14. 

The training, which was scheduled for Feb. 20-22 at Valley View Elementary, would have brought local responders together for a coordinated exercise. 

The workshop was to be hosted by Louisiana State University and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. However, FEMA notified Boundary County Emergency Management Director Corey Thatcher on Feb. 17 that all nationwide training had been suspended. 

A similar exercise held at Bonners Ferry High School in March 2023 involved simulated gunfire, multiple emergency vehicles and more than 40 first responders. 

Boundary County Sheriff Travis Stolley said the training would have helped agencies improve coordination in the event of an active shooter. 

“It’s a good exercise to work through our plans that we have in place already and then review them and say, ‘Here’s what we can do better, or here’s what worked or didn’t work,’” Stolley said. 

“Not very often do we get to have that many different players all on the same sheet of music, so to speak, where we’re looking at it from the same perspective and listening to each other’s perspectives,” he said. 

The training also was expected to incorporate new technology. 

“The school district recently upgraded its mapping systems,” Stolley said. “It would have been the first time we trained with those systems and familiarized all the different parties with them. The idea is to find weak spots in communication and our responses and make sure we’re all on the same page when we respond to that kind of situation.” 

The three-day session was to run several hours each day and conclude with scenario-based field training. 

“The first two days are pretty classroom intensive,” Stolley said. “The last day is more scenario-based, where we take everything we went through in the classroom and do the practical application. There wouldn’t have been any live fire in this specific training.” 

The course required a minimum of 30 participants. Thatcher, who began his position in January, said reaching that number was difficult. After receiving an enrollment extension, 33 people had signed up. 

“Even if all of the law enforcement in Boundary County signs up, that’s not enough personnel,” Thatcher said. “It was a very close call. I managed to get a significant deadline extension because we had passed the enrollment deadline and weren’t anywhere near the required numbers.” 

Although the event was canceled, Thatcher said he appreciated those who registered, including about 15 volunteers who planned to serve as role-players. 

“I think it’s great that people in our county are willing to take time out of their lives to get this training and be there for our community in the unfortunate circumstance that something like this happens,” Thatcher said.